Taking Chances
by Sounddrive
Summary: Slight AU TFA. It was supposed to be an Intergalactic Relations Meeting. Things go awry after an attempted assassination upon one of the Oasian Council members. Immediately, Jazz is decided to be the culprit. The others know that he's innocent & are determined to clear his name. However, they have no idea what they're up against. OC's within. HIATUS.
1. Prologue: The Assassin's Letter

**A/N: Thanks to RintinDestiny for becoming my beta-reader. :D Check out her fics!**_  
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* * *

_Within a far off Oasian Cave . . ._

The room was empty except for the furnishings that lay inside. A long, Oasian floor mat took over most of the stone floor, a table with a single piece of paper on it, a three-legged stool that stood behind it and longer table towards the back of the room were the only other furniture.

The mat was beautifully made, shifting patterns of multi-colored diamonds and plaid made the piece look as if it were some sort of ocean of moving color. The table and stool seemed to be the opposite, worn, ragged, and in disrepair. The stool was made of some sort of dark, hard, wood but it leaned to the side since one of its three legs was a bit shorter than the other two. The seat cover that was once strong was now weakening, with the protective rubber material upon the seat peeling off like sun burnt skin.

The epistle that was written on the desk was scripted in bold Oasian text. The flowing letters were in black but scratched next to the names, seemingly by a quill, were side notes . . . instructions penned out in blood red ink.

It read:

The High Council Meeting for Intergalactic Relations shall be held within one Cybertronian deca-cycle.

Guests include-

Oasian High Council Members:   
Dream Stomper  
Lord Sharpfeather  
Aquamarine  
Lord Wolfgang  
Lady Petal Weaver  
Lady Silverglass  
Her Great Honor, Jewel Star, Oasia's Devout Leader. (Dispatch) [Idiot to even think of the Treaty . . .]

Of the Cybertronian Elite Guard:   
Sentinel Prime (Poison) [Deserves it]  
Jazz [I've got plans for you Cyber-Ninja . . . You'll be sure to remember me]  
Jetfire and his twin Jetstorm (Kidnap the Wind One)

Translator:   
Thunder (Maim but not kill) [The brat . . .]

Other Cybertronian Guests:  
Optimus Prime [Seated in the back, no concern]  
Bumblebee [A hot shot that'll mess up if he tries anything . . .]  
Ratchet [old codger, no concern]

Techno-Organic Earthling:   
Sari Sumdac (Kidnap for leverage?) [Time will only tell]

Now on the other side of the room stood the long, elegant table that seemed to be kept in much better shape then it's counterpart. Upon the table were deadly arrays of all sorts of weaponry that gleamed and shone with a savage beauty. Deadly swords, daggers with gleaming tips, and bow and arrows tipped with poison lay in an elegant quiver. The bow was carved with sorts of Oasian runes that spoke of death and curses of old. Next to the table hung barbed nets that had been stolen from the docks of the Oasian shore. But finally the bulk of the deadly collection seemed to be guns and ammunition. All were finely decorated and seemed to come from the different planets around the universe and tribes of Oasia. Each was highly polished to a sheen that could have been used as a mirror. It showed that the owner of these deadly weapons cared for them like a parent cares for a child.

It was clear that whoever owned all the weapons and wrote the threatening notes on the stolen piece of paper was of hostile intent. But only the culprit himself knew when or where he would strike first. And that's just how he wanted it.


	2. The Translator's Significance

Jazz paced nervously back and forth, his pedes making almost no noise on the floor. He was anxious about going to Oasia, for it has been many stellar cycles since the Cybertronian and Oasians races had met in peace. And for good reason; Cybertronians and Oasians weren't known for liking each other. Many skirmishes had broken out and neither group was innocent of them. He was glad for one thing though; the translator accompanying him to Oasia was his adopted son, Thunder.

Currently, the Cyber-Ninja was going over audio tracks of the Oasian dialect over and over with his audio-receptors. He was sitting in his living room; on a monstrous couch that could've fit even Bulkhead's large girth. In front of him was a giant, rectangular metal table with a variety of things collected on top of it. An energon cube, data-pads that had maps of the Oasia, an Oasian-to-Cybertronian dictionary (the only one he could find) and a holo-scan of his spark-mate, Melody. At the thought of the femme, Jazz couldn't help but smile and momentarily forget his troubles.

His thoughts were interrupted when a certain youngling bursts through the entrance yelling, "I'M HOME!" loudly. Jazz tapped one side of his headphones, shutting off the blurb of Oasian language and turned his attention to Thunder.

The youngling was the approximate age of a fifteen year old earthling, or in Cybertronians years about one thousand, five hundred stellar cycles. The young mech had mostly white armor except for his shoulder plates, which were gold, and his knee coverings which were black. His derma-plating was a dark gray, with the only breaks being thin lines of dingy white on his upper arms. Thunder also donned a visor, similar to Jazz's but more angled at the tips; giving the youth a certain flare. His pedes were similar to Bumblebee's while he was the yellow cop car, but the youngling's pedes had his Oasian name signature.

The symbol that was on the outsides of his pedes was a large circle outlined in a dark shadow. Within it, a thin, vertical, green, line sliced the circle evenly in two. Then in the middle a blunt triangle, outlined in red, was perpendicular to the line. A lightning bolt finished off the symbol for the youngling's name sake. But just to be difficult sometimes Jazz teased him by calling him 'Lightning' instead.

"Hey kid," Jazz acknowledged coolly as Thunder removed his visor and placed it in his subspace.

"Where ya been?"

The youngling doesn't answer at first, for he was smiling wistfully as he still went through his subspace. He lets out a small exhale when he found what he had been looking for. It was a data-pad, from the look of it, but it had an odd shape that the Cyber-ninja had never seen before. It looked like a data-pad, it had a screen and the right buttons but on either side of it flared out and scalloped.

_'Almost like those treats humans give their pets',_ Jazz mused silently as he watched.

"What is it?" he finally asked.

"Ol' memories I put away." Thunder sighed dreamily, his almond shaped optics shuttering for a moment.

He looks up at Jazz, whose helm was leaning to the side curiously; his adoptive parent's face seemed slightly concerned.

"From Oasia, 'fore I came here . . ." The youngling murmured.

Jazz mouthed an 'oh' in understanding; it had been a long while since Thunder last was on his home planet.

Thunder wasn't pure Cybertronian; he was a hybrid . . . half Oasian . . . half Cybertronian. That is why Jazz adopted the youngling, when he and his mother had arrived on Cybertron they had been immediately shunned, Thunder marked as an outcast . . . an abomination. But the Cyber-Ninja had felt bad for the defenseless youngling and adopted him.

Happily sliding over so that Thunder could sit next to him, Jazz watched as he plopped down beside him. Once they were shoulder-to-shoulder, the youngling stared at the data pad for another nano-click. Then a look that was resembling grief on Thunder's faceplate before he pressed the middle of the screen and holo-scan popped up. Then Jazz realized why Thunder had a hard time turning the device on at first.

The first holo-scan was of Thunder when he was only six hundred stellar cycles old with his late mother.

"Ya don't have ta show me if you ain't comfortable," Jazz murmurs, placing a gentle servo upon the young one's shoulder.

"Nah, it isn't that Pops," Thunder sniffed, rubbing his optics. "I . . . I gotta face this 'fore I go back."

The Elite Guard member nodded in understanding as removed his servo from Thunder's shoulder. The youngling immediately flipped through the holo-pic files throughout the data-pad. Slowly he began explaining to Jazz what he would see once they all arrived in Oasia.

"You see that there?" Thunder asks, pointing to an animal Jazz that stuck him similar to an Asian elephant of Earth.

It looked odd to Jazz though, a seemingly seamless fusion of mechanics and organic matter. The creature had a bright white hide with little to no wrinkles at all and instead of tusks like an elephant it had two ebony horns that resembled a bull's horns coming out from the sides of its forehead.

"That's a mode of transportation back at Oasia."

"Crazy," Jazz chuckled, leaning in to take a closer look at the bizarre creature.

Thunder then went on through what other animals of Oasia that they might encounter. Overgrown birds with metallic feathers, reptiles as long as Jazz's arm with glowing eyes; the whole list went on and on!

"But there's one place we have to avoid at all costs," Thunder added seriously, grabbing Jazz's Oasia data-map from the table and setting his own data pad down. He tapped the screen and dialed in some coordinates. A large, 3D hologram of the lush forest popped up with gigantic trees that were taller than even the tallest buildings on Cybertron.

Curiosity getting the better of him, the Cyber-Ninja asked, "Why do we need to avoid this place? Doesn't look bad."

"It's a bad place Pops." Thunder frowned deeply and reached out to grasp the 3D image.

The youngling then rotated it one hundred and eighty degrees to the right and Jazz's optics widened under his visor. The hologram then showed a giant plot of land that was about ten acres big. An emblem with a snake with its hood opened as it was shown. Within its maw weren't any fangs, but there were two daggers that seemed almost real and instead of a tongue, there was a curved scimitar.

"The Serpentine clan still exists out there?" Jazz asked incredulously, whipping around to face Thunder. The youngling tapped the screen again and turned to his parent.

"After the Great War . . ." Thunder explained, getting into historian mode.

He sighed a bit before continuing, "The High Council called out to exterminate the Serpentine clan, since they worked with the Decepticons to try to take over Oasia." Jazz nodded somewhat impatiently, knowing that bit of history already.

"But until recently, no one knew that one of them survived, and started to hire some weapons cartels to help become . . . some sort of anti-treaty group."

"A thousand strong apparently," Jazz murmured; tapping his chin while he examined the known stats of the clan. He couldn't help but notice the size of the territory Thunder had just showed him.

Turning to the hybrid again, he asked, "Where is that place?"

"A couple of miles away from the abandoned docks," Thunder responded, gritting his denta together.

"No one but the High Council's soldiers goes there to try to remove the artillery and supplies left behind from the Battle of the Crystalline Citadel."

"But, those Serpentine Rebels . . ." Thunder growled, sounding like one of those organics from Earth for a second. His growl reverberating through his chassis, making Jazz holds up his servos in a 'calm down' motion.

Taking an intake, Thunder sighed, "But, they keep killing the wounded . . . even their own . . ."

"I'll be sure to pass it along to our Council," Jazz said, taking the map data-pad. He quickly bookmarked the holo-scan and got up. He then turned to the youngling, seeing him still seated.

"Ya comin' or what?" that caused a small smile to escape from the somber hybrid as he sat up from the couch.

"I'll write a note to Mel," Thunder exclaimed as he hustles inside to go and find a blank data-pad to write the said message.

Jazz turns to look outside the living room windows, seeing that the lights were starting to flicker a wee bit brighter. It was getting late, meaning they had to move fast.


	3. A Friend From Far Away

_Two solar cycles later: late afternoon . . ._

The room the two mechs were occupying was rather simply, plain and cramped for the Cybertronians. One of the mechs, Ultra Magnus, lay on a medical berth on the right side of the room while the other, Sentinel Prime sat beside him. Wires connected Magnus to several machines that kept track of the injured mech's spark beat and vital signs. Bandages amassed the leader of the Autobots; thanks to the number Shockwave did to him before Optimus's team returned to Cybertron, hailed as heroes.

Not too far from the foot of the berth was Sentinel, sitting in a chair. The usually strict and alert Prime was sitting with his helm in his servos; exhaustion seeping from the mech. He had been taking over Ultra Magnus's duties ever since he returned to Cybertron from earth. It seems that he rarely got more than four mega-cycles of recharge and not in a row either. He couldn't see how Ultra Magnus did this for more than a solar cycle; forget all the stellar cycles that he had been alive.

"Are you sure everything is in order for the journey, Sentinel Prime?" Magnus asked his optics opening.

"Y-yes sir, I've made sure every passenger that would be on the _Steelhaven_ is notified as of the previous solar cycle. We are ready to depart at your word." Sentinel said stifling a yawn

"Good," the Magnus wearily sighed, leaning back on the berth he was laid up in. Magnus and his Second in Command were currently in a closed-off room where they could discuss the upcoming voyage to Oasia. It was a rather tip-lipped topic, especially since a majority of the population on Cybertron had a rather vehement loathing towards anything that was organic or any being that lived in or near an organic planet.

Magnus believed that strengthening intergalactic relations was necessary; especially with Megatron and most of his lieutenants under Autobot custody. That would make things a lot easier and less stressed. Oasia was just outside Autobot Airspace, several thousand leagues away from where the planet Antilla once was before getting destroyed in the War. Luckily, most Oasians were willing to renew and extend a treaty that was made back in the Great Wars. It was first created to assure the organic-fearing Autobots that the Oasians wouldn't turn on them.

The addendum to the treaty would be to make Oasia a part of the Autobot Commonwealth and allow them the rights of any native Cybertronian. Magnus knew that this would not be a popular decision with Cybertron but this was the only way to end the strife between the two races.

"Sentinel," Ultra Magnus stated tiredly.

The temporary commander snapped back to attention, looking straight at his superior officer. The Magnus Hammer wilder blinks twice before continuing, "Are you sure you'll be able to be competent on this mission, especially with Optimus Prime going along with his crew?"

Sentinel blanched. _'No!'_ one part of the blue and black Prime screamed. _'Yes, of course I am sir.'_ argued the other side. But either way he couldn't get over his open dislike for the other Prime. Ever since returning to Cybertron, Sentinel was still trying to get over the fact that Elita-1 had somehow been . . . mutated into an organic freak. And he knew that, somehow, Optimus was to blame. _'But how could you have known? Her organic half covered her energy signature; you couldn't do anything . . . _a small voice argued at the back of his processor.

_'If only those demons could truly go away . . .'_

Realizing that the Magnus was waiting for him to respond, Sentinel cleared his throat and answered, "Um, yes sir, I am willing to collaborate with Optimus and his crew,"

"Including Miss Sari Sumdac?" Ultra Magnus added, slightly quirking an optic ridge whilst tilting his helm.

Sentinel subconsciously ground his denta together in frustration. Sari Sumdac, the one member where Optimus was rather caring about as if it was one of his own. But taking it into consideration . . . it was really all of Optimus's crew that was that was protective of the techno-organic. Especially the yellow one; Bumblebee.

Much to his disgruntlement, it was that particular member of the Academy wash-out that figured out how to fix his superior due to her power . . . and her advice to the medi-bots was what kept Magnus online. So grudgingly he agreed.

"I know you and Optimus's team don't generally see optic-to-optic," the Magnus stated softly, making Sentinel feel somewhat impatient.

He had heard this speech so many times . . .

"But you must learn to act as a team with them. Think of it as . . . one of the training sessions back in your time at the boot camp."

_'Oh Primus preserve me!'_ Sentinel silently prayed. "Yes, I understand sir," he answered in a strained voice.

* * *

_Later in Sentinel Prime's Accommodations . . ._

Sentinel barely managed to get into his quarters before someone is calling upon him via his comm-link. Sighing to himself he tapped the side of his helm and barked, "What is it? Look-"

"-Gee Sentinel-," a cool voice addressed him, cutting him off from his oncoming rant. "-What crawled up your tailpipe?-" Realizing that the caller was going to be the guide on Oasian ground, the Prime surprisingly managed to apologize.

He didn't want to offend one of the few Oasians that he could get along with.

"Sorry Overdrive…" Sentinel sighed as he turned on the light in his room and then sat down unceremoniously on his small couch. He tried to get comfortable as he inquired of his soon to be guide, "What time is it over on your side?"

"-I'm heading to my evening class actually; I just wanted to make sure that you were okay-," the female Oasian murmured, concerned. "-Last time we chatted, you went asleep-erm, recharge that is, on me.-" Sentinel couldn't help but feel a flush of energon race to his face-plates and the fact that she had used the organic term for recharge only helped grate his nerves.

"I'm stand-in Magnus, what'd you expect?"

A small chuckle came from the other end though, "-Oi, Sentinel, I'm worried about your health . . .-" "-At the rate you're going, at only a few megacycles at a time? By Thistle . . .-"

"Hey," Sentinel murmured, checking his chronometer. It was practically the crack of Cybertronian dawn now. "You get to class. I promise to get some more recharge, especially when I'm setting the Steelhaven on auto-pilot."

"-Loud and clear sir,-" the female Oasian replied, the smile obvious in her voice. "-Also, I'll be holding you to my Goddess, Thistle that you'll hold to that slagged promise-." she added seriously.

"-And so, I sign off. Primus be with you and see you in a few more solar cycles.-"

"Don't cook anything too weird," Sentinel replied, a tinge of a tease in his voice. _"A-fran-oui."_

"Right back at you Prime," the femme replied, obviously glad that some Oasian dialect stuck with the Prime. Especially since it was their inside joke. "Night, and get some fragging shut-eye you stubborn Cybertronian!"

And even before the Oasian female shut up her comm-line, Sentinel was already in recharging on the couch.

* * *

_Back in an Oasian Forest . . ._

The sun had long since set, but working by moonlight never bothered the hunter. The Oasian half moon gave off a blue light, and the only thing anyone could see of him if one looked closely was his blood red eyes glowing in the night. He was shielded by a mass of leaves, covering his whole body. The silhouette he gives off is that he is a lean one; an oddity around these parts. Two metal, wolf-like audios adorn his helm, pricked and ready to hear anyone coming his way; a short tail wagging happily behind him.

The hunter couldn't help but smile as he scribbled the last of the conversation from the Prime onto a note pad. Satisfied with his notes, he tucked his quill into a breast-pocket and capped his ink bottle. Then he returned to rooting around at the base of a tree, his nose snuffling as if he was eating.

"Oh, such a grand night it'll be in five solar cycles," he hissed with bloodlust, some sort of liquid dripping from his mouth bared in a fanged smirk.

He double-checks his knapsack, which is full of compacted weapons: blow darts, hand-held guns, and even a collapsible carving knife.

"Viper shall be pleased with my findings." he thought to himself as he stood stretched. Then with a snort of humorless laughter he dropped something into the crook of the tree that he had been digging in.

A single drop of liquid fell into the moist dirt, but as it hit the fertile soil it evaporated, leaving the dirt gray and sending up a puff of smoke.

Then with something akin to a salute to the moon, the Oasian then departed, howling toward the sky. His eerie night song echoing through the trees. Within a few minutes a small green lizard-like creature scurried up the bark of the tree with the motive to return to its nest. Instead, it recoiled in shock at the sight of what was left of its brood in the crook of the tree. Skeletons of her babies were picked clean, and un-hatched eggs were sucked dry. It sniffed once, unaware of an odorless poison that had been left by the assassin. But by the time she realized it, it had was too late. The toxin set fire to her nostrils, and then to her nerves, sending the small creature writhing to the ground.

The lizard turned from green to blue and then blue to black within seconds; her skin started to smoke and peel. Pathetically, she fell toward the ground meters below her. A gentle wind blows away the ashes of that she's become.

The first casualty in what would become many.


	4. Departing

_Jazz's house, early morning . . ._

The room they were in was nearly black except for the small halo of luminosity that came from a small light that stood guard by the door, it's cool, blue glow throwing shadows around the berth-room. Inside the room was a large berth with two, still, Cybertronians seemingly recharging underneath a dark blue blanket. The pair was snuggled together; the sleeping femme's helm tucked snugly under the mech's chin.

The mech however was wide awake, struggling to get some more shut-eye. Jazz was gently stroking circles on Melody's back strut; somber thoughts running through his processor. He was extremely reluctant to get out of his berth even though he knew that the _Steelhaven_ was going to leave in just a few megacycles and he needed to be there on time. The one thing that was causing the mech to hesitate was Melody; no one would be there to keep her company while he and Thunder were away.

The Cyber-Ninja's arms were wrapped around the waist of his still recharging spark-mate. Her face was peaceful and content looking as she vented softly. She was only a few stellar cycles younger than Jazz and had almost the same coloring. She had more black then white, isolated mainly on her helm wings, pedes, waist, and shoulders. The little derma-plating that was showing was of the same shade of his face-plates.

Sighing, the mech slowly starts to nuzzle his mate's olfactory sensor with his own, making her stir slightly.

"Hmm," mumbled the femme as she slowly opened her bright blue optics.

She craned her neck cables in order to place a chaste kiss on Jazz's mouth, causing him to half shutter his optics for a moment. Melody finally pulled away the shadow of a frown evident on her face-plates as she noticed how unsettled her spark mate was.

"Do you have to go so soon?" she whispered softly and Cyber-Ninja wordlessly nodded.

The femme sighed sadly, extracted herself from her mate's hold and sat up. By habit, she drew her knees close to her chest-plates and let her forehead touch the top of them.

"Hey," Jazz whispered, positioning his chassis so that he was his front whilst looking at his mate. "Ya know it'll just be a quick meeting . . ."

"And then Magnus will send you off on another mission," Melody murmured quietly, bitterness edging her voice as her saddened optics met his visor.

"Jazz . . . I know you have an important stand in the Guard and everything . . . but I swear . . ." she let out a frustrated sigh, "we rarely even get to properly converse with one another for the past millennia." Jazz bit his lower lip, knowing full well what she meant.

"Hey, I swear I'll come back in one piece this time," Jazz whispered, tentatively reaching up with his right servo.

Luckily, Melody wasn't mad enough to ignore her mate's affectionate gesture, so she grasped Jazz's servo tightly and ran her thumb over his digits.

"Jazz, the last time you said that . . ." Melody couldn't continue as a sob choked her.

She then buried her face-plates to her arms, her whole frame shaking as Jazz got up and embraced her.

"I nearly lost you. And in the end we-we l-lost . . ." The awful memories began to assault Jazz's memory core. He immediately blocked off his end of the bond link to Melody, trying not to distress her more with his own sadness.

"Sonata . . . oh Sonata . . ." Melody let out in a keen that was close to a shriek of pain, her frame rocking slightly.

"Shh, shh," Jazz whispered, slowly rocking back and forth with her in order to try to ease the femme. The name Melody uttered sent a tremor of grief through Jazz's frame as his mate began to sob. Cybertronians couldn't shed tears, but the sound they emanated with such sorrow resembled them quite well; it was heart wrenching.

"I-I miss her Jazzy . . . I m-miss her so much . . ." Melody stammered, trying to control her emotions.

She tightened her grip on Jazz's guarded arms and he covered her servos gently with his own. Without a conscious thought, Jazz pulled the femme's helm towards his chest-plates, where his spark was throbbing; sending a signal that nothing akin to what happened to their little one would happen to him.

* * *

_Six and a half hours later, just outside of the Space-Bridge Nexus . . ._

"Okay, okay . . ." Thunder muttered to himself.

He couldn't help but feel somewhat lightheaded as he looked up at the looming shape of the _Steelhaven_. It's thick, metal hull was looming several hundreds of feet above the youngling. Thunder had never seen such a huge military vessel as this, and he felt honored to just be able to step into it.

Upon his chest-plates now was a badge magnet that signified him as an official junior translator for the Elite Guard. However, he wasn't very keen on meeting the others of the guard. The youngling had a hard time getting to know others, even if they were friends of his Pops or foster Carrier. He always felt like he was being judged, and it didn't help that he had heard some of the guard-mechs talking just a few cycles earlier about how uneasy they were with Oasia.

It made Thunder grimace at the thought at how hateful some Cybertronians could be to Oasians. He had experienced it first hand when Jazz and Melody were the only ones willing to take care of him when his Carrier had died. No one else wanted to take care of a half-breed of one of their enemies. It made him think of the three other Cybertronian/Oasian hybrids that he knew. One was back on Oasia, keeping his lineage a secret. The two others were still very young, a few stellar cycles younger than Thunder. And they lived in a Cybertronian orphanage, hoping to be adopted without anyone figuring out their own half pedigrees.

But, bringing his processor back to the present, he thought back to his own loving adoptive parents. Thunder did feel slightly guilty that he didn't get to hug, or even say farewell to Melody. He knew that the femme hated it when Jazz left for an undisclosed amount of time, and even more so when he got hurt. Usually Thunder was there to at least keep her company, but not this time.

"Hey," a voice suddenly came from behind him, causing the bot to start.

Automatically, Thunder whipped around, ready to attack. To his surprise it was a small yellow bot that he vaguely remembered meeting before. _'What was his name again . . .?'_ the hybrid thought to himself.

"Whoa! Whoa! Easy there," the yellow mech shouted, flailing his arms around to try to disarm the youngling, "It's me, Bumblebee; ya know . . . we met at your dad's place . . .?"

"Sorry," Thunder replied, feeling quite embarrassed and out of habit reached into his sub-space for his visor. Quickly, the hybrid placed it over his face plate. He received an inquiring look from Bumblebee that he answered with a deep frown.

Luckily, Bumblebee didn't push the subject and asked instead, "So, where's your 'Pops'?" placing his servos on his hips.

"A lil' late, he always packs last minute, as the organics say," Thunder quipped quickly, the uneasy feeling coming over him as Bee continued to look at the younger mech.

_'Quit looking at me . . .'_ Thunder wanted to snap at the other. He hated it when others stared.

"Well Bee," murmured a soft voice from behind the Autobot. Thunder nearly jumped out of his armor when Sari Sumdac suddenly showed up in his line of view. She was in her full robot mode with her mini-jetpack.

"Hi Thunder." The hybrid youngling only took several steps back and then sighs in relief.

Sometimes, surprises got him on the edge too much . . .

"Hey, you okay?" Sari asked gently, looking at the hybrid. All she really knew about Thunder was that he wasn't fully Cybertronian and that he wasn't the most social bot.

"You look kinda stressed . . ."

"I'm . . ." Thunder started slowly, trying to think of a quick excuse " . . . I'm just a bit nervous is all; I haven't been on Oasia since I was about your age equivalent; not since I was eight."

"So . . . how many stellar cycles are you?" the teenager asks, tilting her head to the side.

"A lot," Thunder chuckled dryly, "About a hundred and fifty thousand years. But, by your Earth equivalent . . . hmm; I say about fifteen."

"You have something on your processor," Sari murmured, her face-plates retracting to reveal her face.

"Care to talk?"

This made the youngling twist away a bit from the techno-organic, a small memory tugging at his processor.

_"When ya get to Cybertron Brother Bear, stay safe . . . please don't forget us . . ."_ an ethereal voice from his youth whispered to his audios.

"A friend of my past," Thunder finally admitted, looking at her. He was glad for his visor, for he was beginning to tear up; it was the one thing that exposed Oasians to Cybertronians. It was their organic-like ability to shed tears.

"I miss her, and I dunno if she still lives in my village."

As if on cue, Sentinel arrived on the bridge of the ship and barked, "Hurry up you cogs!" Thunder turned about to face Sentinel calling from the formidable ship, looking ticked.

"Well, doesn't he sound peachy . . ." Bumblebee muttered in disdain, "This'll be a fun trip." and he started marching towards the bridge.

No sooner than he said that, Jazz showed up with Melody trailing behind him. Knowing that he wouldn't have another chance, Thunder rushed up to hug both his foster parents tightly.

"Be careful my mechs," Melody was able to whisper.

She looked like as if she would've started crying then if she could. Thunder didn't say anything but he huddled closer to the elder femme, trying to ease a few of her fears. She wasn't going to face another loss; Thunder and Jazz both made a pact to make sure that their sparks would be snuffed only by natural causes.

"We'll be on our bases, no worries sweet-spark," Jazz murmured, giving her a quick peck before hugging his small family tighter.

From the ship, several of the crew was looking out to the family of three. Among them was Sari who felt extremely bad for Melody. She had gotten to know the femme after meeting her at Jazz's 'Get-to-Know-Everyone' party at his house. The elder femme was very sweet, and was once a part of the Elite Guard Forensic Team. During the bash, Mel described some of the non-high classified cases she worked on, which were mainly from the Omega Precinct.

"Load up your supplies; we leave in half a mega-cycle," Sentinel said briskly, turning away from the scene, hiding the expression of remorse that crossed his face.

* * *

_On Oasia, just outside a small village . . ._

A femme Oasian was sitting atop the white cliffs only about ten miles away from her village. She was sitting on her rear; her white, feline-like metallic tail was curled about her left leg as she was watching the rosy, Oasian sun go down. The evening colors were magical, and there was no doubt that her artist of a cousin would be trying to capture it on her canvass. The Oasian femme could practically smell the berries her relative was using for her paints. At that thought she gave a small laugh.

The femme was named Overdrive. Her azure optics glimmered with sadness, deep mourning that hid in their watery depths. Her entire body was usually comprised of pristine white armor, but she had visited the mines that morning to see one of the blacksmiths, and now was a dingy gray from the coal dust.

"Wish you were here Brother Bear," the Oasian murmured softly, sighing as she placed her folded servos over her knee joints.

Then almost immediately Overdrive plunked her chin upon her dainty servos, looking out across the landscape forlornly. At times like these, she wished her best friend were here . . . however, he wasn't and she could do nothing about it. The cat-like audios atop her helm twitched as a small insect landed on one of them. Overdrive shook her head vigorously, succeeding in getting the little nuisance off. Slowly but surely, the robotic feline got back up to her pedes and started to make the long way to her evening cooking classes.

Within the next solar cycle or so, the Elite Guard would be here, leaving only about three days for the Autobots to settling into the temporary hut that her entire family set up just a few paces away from her own home.

_'Thistle knows how it'll go with Sentinel,'_ Overdrive mused to herself, picking up the pace as she dashes down the carved rocky path.

Luckily, she hadn't tripped the snare that was on the path of where she walked. From afar, a lithe hunter passionately growled with a murderous rumble. His prey escaping him . . . for now.


	5. New News

**A/N: Thanks for your patience guys! Sorry, sorry, sorry!**

**RintinDestiny gets credit for beta-reading this!**

* * *

From the entrance of the med-bay, rows of berths lined on the left and right sides of the room. The room was mainly of a cobalt blue and a pristine white that rivaled Jazz's finish. Occupying one of the berths was a certain hybrid youngling. On his forehead was a damp cloth that had been placed in a sad attempt to cool his systems down. On the youngling's right was a small nightstand and to his left was his concerned foster parent. Though the half-breed didn't seem to notice.

Thunder had never felt so ill in his life stream. One nano-click, he was recharging peacefully. The next thing he knew, his tanks gave a horrid lurch and he was immediately dashing to a trash bin in his temporary quarters, suddenly choking up energon he had ingested only a few megacycles ago. Now, he had been placed under Ratchet's care, and he was glad that he was ailing while the medic was in one of his rare good moods. Oddly enough, he had motion sickness, even if the _Steelhaven _was making a snail's pace towards his planet of origin.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Jazz murmured, concerned, holding the poor youngling's extremely hot servo.

Thunder's systems were in overheating; the youngling prayed to both Primus and Thistle that he hadn't caught a virus of some sort. He wouldn't be able to do his job then!

"Yeah, yeah, I'm-a fine Pops," Thunder murmured weakly, attempting to get up.

It proved to be too much of a hassle as his viz-scanners suddenly began to give him double-vision. The mech immediately had a servo upon his forehead, his digits rubbing that area vigorously to try to ease his pain. Pitifully, a groan emitted from the hybrid. Thunder fell back onto the berth unceremoniously with a resounding _CLANG!_

"Is it contagious?" Bumblebee hollered from the far-off entrance to the miniature med-bay.

Jazz couldn't help but to shoot a glare towards the yellow bot; of all the things he could've said . . .

"No, it's just his systems," Ratchet nearly snarled as he brandishing his almighty wrench.

Bumblebee then started to creep back out of the entrance, hoping to get out of the medic's legendary range.

Once the little Autobot was out of sight, Ratchet returned his attention to the ill youngling, who was coughing.

"You say that he's the offspring of Oasian and Cybertronian energon-lines?" Ratchet asked the Cyber-Ninja.

Jazz nodded in affirmation, letting Thunder's servo down onto the berth. "Primus, have you only been giving him energon?" the medic asked incredulously, looking at the Autobot Elite Guard member with a stern expression.

"No! Oh Primus no," Jazz exclaimed, holding out his servos and them waving them about as if to veto the medic's statement. "Me and Mel, we knew that Thunder had to have a diet not only of energon, but of some of the Oasian rations as well."

"I know for a fact that Oasia and Cybertron have yet to make such a shipping agreement; heck that's why we're all on this ship! How in the AllSpark did you get it?!" the Cybertronian veteran nearly growled, clenching his denta together.

Jazz hesitated and looked over his shoulder to make sure that Sentinel wouldn't enter the room at that moment. For the past several mega-cycles, Sentinel Prime had been driving everyone up the wall, making Bulkhead nearly attack the Prime. Some were going to intervene the tiff that would've definitely happened; others would've run out for the danger it issued to their welfare.

Luckily it never happened.

"So again I must ask you, Jazz," Ratchet murmured quite irritably. "How in the name of Cybertron, has this kid been online for this long without Oasian provisions?" The blue-visor mech couldn't help but cringe at the tone of the elder mech's tone of voice.

"Thunder isn't alone in the Oasian/Cybertronian hybrid gene pool. He knows a couple others that live undercover on Cybertron," Jazz explained and understanding lit Rathcet's face plate.

"So, he's been getting that supply from other hybrids?" A silent nod from the Cyber-Ninja makes Ratchet groan in annoyance.

"In that case, I think that Thunder may have the human equivalent of something called 'food poisoning'." And at this Jazz cringed.

Thunder was prone to illnesses from both Oasian and Cybertronian coding, and it grated on the youngling's nerves. But due to his strong affection towards his late mother and pride of his planet, Thunder never said a harsh thing about his either of his heritage's flaws.

"Well, I believe the only way to cure the boy is with some kind of food from the Oasians," Ratchet murmured, grabbing a data-pad that was on the mini-night stand near Thunder's helm. "Something full of vitamins . . ."

Immediately, Jazz prayed the _Steelhaven_ would make it to Oasia's orbit soon, for he didn't know how much longer his youngling could take the abdominal pains from deep within.

* * *

_In the bridge . . ._

"-Wait, your translator is sick?-" Overdrive snapped angrily at Sentinel Prime from behind the monitor.

The seated Prime managed to hide his disgust of the organic-like audio receptors that were pulled back on her helm. The female's entire appearance seemed to resemble that of an organic pet called a cat.

But Overdrive was indeed a Robotic, as the Oasians insisted eons ago that they weren't organics. The planet they lived on was. Her eyes were an azure shade, but her pupils were practically slits as she hissed something in her native tongue, most likely a curse. Behind her was a white, metallic tail, swishing back and forth wildly. The femme was also mostly of a white plating upon her chassis, and she had some kind of black-jacket like apparel wrapped around her. Very thin, wire, whiskers could be barely seen on her face as well.

"He's a Hybrid, Overdrive," Sentinel retorted, flanked by the Jet Twins. "He's been living mainly on energon for the past-"

"-Dear Thistle above!-" the outraged Oasian caterwauled, and then he slammed her fist upon the console she was behind.

The femme's wrath made Jetfire and Jetstorm recoil a bit. "-Oi, give him distilled energon. Dear Thistle . . . too much energon will make any hybrid like him overheat!-"

"Well how was I supposed to know? I'm not expert on such things" Sentinel snapped back at the guide, but knowing nothing good would come out of it. The Prime took two deep intakes and glanced at the two younglings on either side of him.

"Jetfire, Jetstorm, leave us for several cycles if you would?" The twins were happy to oblige, dashing away hurriedly.

Once they were alone, Overdrive sighed in defeat. "-Sentinel, if your translator offlines . . .-"

"He won't; I promise you on that."

"-Like I said then; distilled low-grade energon should help with the nausea . . . and do you have any rust-sticks aboard?-" the femme asked, cocking her helm to the side as her tail disappeared from view.

Rust-sticks were the little snacks that every Cybertronian loved, either one from a pure line or a hybrid.

"-That should help get rid of some 'yuck-factor' of regurgitating what energon he had . . .-"

"I'll see what we can do," Sentinel replied tiredly, rubbing his optics.

"-Did you recharge yet?-" The sudden question nearly threw the Prime in for a loop.

The silence from the Prime made Overdrive scold, "-Sentinel, what did I-"

"Femme, hush, we're still twelve mega-cycles out from Oasia's atmosphere!" Sentinel huffed, suppressing a yawn.

He didn't need another reason for the Oasian to coddle him like his late Carrier. "We'll see you in that bracket of time."

"-Oh dear,-" the femme murmured, and she sounded somewhat . . . panicky?

"Was there something I missed, Overdrive?" Sentinel said tersely, his anger boiling up once again.

"-Oh, no, no! Nothing of the sort!-" the guide exclaimed, waving her arms about. "-It's just, um . . .-" her tail then makes another entrance on the screen. This time though, the femme got a grip of her appendage and was nervously twisting her tail about.

"Out with it! My patience is wearing-"

"-There's a festival going on Sentinel, the Festival of the Children. I thought I mentioned to you before you departed for Cybertron.-"

"How long does it go on for?" the second-in-command nearly whimpered in despair, letting his helm make contact to the console. _'Oh Primus end my misery!'_ the Prime silently begged.

"-Two whole solar-cycles, but that does mean you get to sleep in,-" Overdrive stammered quickly, obviously trying to alleviate the Autobot's woes.

"However, I do worry for your welfare when you get here Sentinel, not a lot of my fellow villagers like you . . .-"

"-So, I get to stay on the _Steelhaven _for several more mega-cycles to get some recharge, and that I'd be away from Prime's team and the prattle of the twins?" the Prime perked up, happy to hear some kind of good news.

"-You say as if your teammates are your enemies Prime; are you alright?-"

"You have no idea," the Prime muttered dismally, letting his helm make contact to the console again.

"-Then I wish you health and a well deserved recharge Sentinel Prime, farewell,-" Overdrive meekly waved goodbye, finally shutting off her end of the communications terminal.

Unbeknownst to the Prime, Thunder was just outside the door. Ratchet had left the youngling to his own devices and the hybrid needed decided to go out and walk a bit. He hated being still, and Thunder didn't get too far before hearing a familiar tone of voice coming from the bridge where Sentinel was. He didn't want to be nosy, but the voice sounded so familiar to him. Curiosity getting the better of him, Thunder managed to poke his helm in for a nano-click before realizing who the Oasian guide would be for the group that he was with.

"Dear Thistle, what are you planning . . .?" Thunder murmured quietly. He couldn't say or do anything else, for a certain medic's pede-steps would mean a wrench to his helm if he didn't head back to his med-berth right at that moment!

* * *

**A/N: Ok, from here on out, updates to any of my fics, including this one, will be sporadic.**

**School starting up again is literally right around the corner (tomorrow) and my muse has taken a vacation so that it can take a break from my somewhat strenuous schedule I gave it.**

**Wondering why I hadn't updated this? Head to my Deviantart page and it's in the journal (yes I have one, Same name as my FF account, sorry I didn't inform you).**


	6. Making Their Way

**A/N: I am so sorry . . . my muse has mutinied on me for so many times . . .**

**This has been sitting in my computer for the past three months, collecting dust. I just got around to editing it myself since my beta-reader has been preoccupied with life-as many of us are-so forgive me for any mistakes.**

* * *

_The Steelhaven's Command Center . . ._

"Nearest Space Bridge at twelve o'clock!" Sari Sumdac shouted from her spot next to Bumblebee.

Everyone was glad of the news and then the twins hug each other in relief. For some, they were already starting to get irritated at one another for no good reason. To name one thing, Jetfire and Jetstorm were chatting to one another insistently. That added with Bumblebee's impatience, it was driving some of the others insane.

"So . . . anyone know the coordinates?" Bumblebee inquired, looking around at everyone.

All optics drifted over to where Thunder and Jazz were. Currently, the pair were looking at one of the screens in the command center. Each gazed at small bits and pieces of Oasia; Jazz with interest as Thunder had an expression of homesickness.

"I've got 'em," Jazz explained, breaking away from where Thunder had his optics glued.

Curiosity getting the better of them, Jetfire, Jetstorm, Bumblebee and Sari venture over to where Thunder was positioned. The youngling didn't seem to notice that they were surrounding him from behind.

Sari silently studied the map of the alien planet. Oasia minutely resembled Earth: it had blue oceans and a breathable atmosphere. Well, at least by human standards according to the flashing letters on the screen.

The northern icecap in particular stretched down to about a fifth of the planet. Also from the image, several continents spanned the planet as well as forests, deserts, and unconnected chains of islands.

Suddenly, the twins blurted in unison, "Vhat at is you looking?"

The loud question made the poor hybrid jump with a yelp.

"DON'T. Do that!" Thunder growled vehemently as he whipped around. Bumblebee instinctively takes a backward step after he sees that Thunder was coiled to attack. The hybrid's denta were bared as another chassis-juddering growl leaves his mouth.

"Cool it, man!" Jazz called out from the main screen. He had just finished typing in the coordinates for the Oasian Docking Bay. He twisted around and gave a slight glare, not in the mood to deal with Thunder's temper.

"They mean no harm! Cool down or else ya won't be the first to step out!" The Cyber-Ninja earned a glare from the youngling, but nothing else was heard from the hybrid.

"What has his circuits in a bunch?" Sentinel wondered aloud.

"At least you weren't torn away from your home," Thunder whispered to no one in particular, turning his gaze back to the screen which projected Oasia.

Sari was shocked. From the way that Jazz and Melody got along with Thunder, she thought the hybrid had originally immigrated to Cybertron willingly. It wasn't the case apparently, with Thunder being somewhat hostile now.

"If that's what yer all wonderin', Thunder is usually a nice kid," Jazz explained once the others start to huddle near the Cyber-Ninja. "He won't harm anyone."

"What happened when the Elite Guard came to have Thunder get to Cybertron?" Optimus murmured quietly as he glanced back at the youngling. Currently, Thunder looked at the screen with a morose expression. The Prime frowned once he realized that the others inched away from the hybrid.

"In fact, what _did_ happen that caused the Guard to have Thunder taken away?" Ratchet questions. "The fact that he's from Oasia-"

"It was bad," Jazz finally admits, rubbing the bridge of his olfactory sensor. He sighs and he dipped his helm for a moment before glancing at the circle around him.

"Thunder's Carrier is Oasian . . . his Creator an Autobot Elite Guard member."

The room was dead silent at that. Sari glanced over at Optimus and Sentinel. Both were ramrod stiff in their postures and shared a perturbed expression.

"Now, he won't tell me _how_ his Carrier died, but as far as I know, the Creator didn't want to do anything with Thunder," Jazz broke the silence, taking a moment or two to see that everyone understood.

"So, how did the Guard get involved?" Bulkhead inquired loudly, scratching his helm. That earned him some hissed 'shh!'s from the others.

"The Guard didn't want to look bad," Jazz deadpanned. "They sent a comm. to Oasia _demanding_ that Thunder be turned over to Cybertronian Jurisdiction."

"Lemme guess," Sari piped up with her hands on her hips. "They wouldn't let him go without a fight."

"Actually, Thunder ran away once he heard, and disappeared for about a few orbital cycles," Jazz clarified in a low tone. "No one knew where he went, not even his best friends."

Then, Jazz's gaze was set behind her, and the others looked as well. Sari twisted around to notice that Thunder wasn't at the console anymore. He was most likely in the med-bay now to get away from the others.

"Then the Guard goes all ballistic and started pestering the Oasians," Sentinel interjected with a sigh. At the confused looks sent his way, the Prime elucidated, "I read the reports. I had to do background checks on everyone coming along." Most of Optimus's team then shook their heads at that.

"Fights broke out at several of the borders in Oasian airspace," the visor wearing mech added. "Then out of the blue, Thunder came back and turned himself in to the Elite Guard."

"How was he be old?" Jetfire questioned, canting his helm to the side.

Jazz's expression looked gloomy at the inquiry. The Cyber-Ninja's gaze then shifted over to Sari, which startled the techno-organic.

"No more than the equivalent of when Optimus's crew met the lil' lady here."

* * *

_At the Oasian Docking Bay . . ._

Overdrive waited patiently nearby the empty docks.

This place was obviously abandoned, and hardly any one came here anymore. There was a huge hangar behind the femme. It was big enough to hold Omega-Class vessels from Cybertron or the Guardian Class ships of Oasia. Upon the building there were several patches of rust the size of an average earth-sized home.

To sum it all up, it was a whole shipyard with a surrounding lake and forest with bushels of flora here and there.

In front of the tolerant femme, stretched the very wide and blue lake. This whole section belonged to the Silver Summit Tribe; known for being the 'jack-of-all-trades' community around the whole planet. No other village had so many different types of professions in one area.

Before she can contemplate on anything else, Overdrive's audio receptors perked up. Only a few meters in front of her, is a fluctuating, blue orb. The thing is just floating above the water like an enchanted sphere.

Overdrive smiled and climbed up the tree behind her.


	7. Arrival: Part I

**A/N: Sorry again for the ludicrously long wait for the next chapter. I've been tied and tired from studies, and finals are in a few weeks and I won't be able to update much after today . . .**

**Please R&R, and thank you liliCartMan and Jaacs McHenry for reviewing the previous chapters. **

* * *

_Inside the Steelhaven . . ._

Thunder gazed out as the _Steelhaven's _drawbridge finally made contact to Oasian soil. He swallows nervously as he scans the environment. The hybrid can feel his spark lurch about in its casing, wanting him to get out and touch the ground already.

Everyone could see from Thunder's expression, and the fact that he shook like a leaf, that the poor kid was scared. He only stopped quivering-just a little-when Jazz walked up to him.

"You okay Thunder?" the Cyber-Ninja asked quietly.

The youngling shook his helm for several seconds. Thunder responded in his native tongue, and to the others it sounded like a staccato of low growls. Then, the hybrid shivered a bit.

"I know it's been a long time since you've been here," Jazz soothed the poor thing. "But, you just gotta . . . 'jump into the water headfirst', as the humans say. You may feel like an alien for a bit, but you'll warm up to it soon enough." Thunder then gave Jazz a skeptical look, and muttered in a mix of English and Oasian.

"If you say so,_ Cunloon,"_ Thunder murmured quietly. The hybrid turns back to the grand environment before him. After a few more seconds of hesitation, he finally managed to pull himself together.

Thunder stepped out into the Oasian sun. Close behind him was Jazz, in case he had a panic attack.

Sari watched the scene with apt curiosity. She looked at Thunder, who kicked the front of his pede, a toe really, into Oasian soil for the first time in thousands of years.

"Let's move!" Sentinel shouted, and everyone followed suit.

* * *

_Outside . . ._

He looked left and then to the right.

Thunder's optics widened in recognition. This was the same port . . . the very same place where he boarded the ship that took him from Oasia.

As far as he remembered, it was once a port full of activity. But now, it had been abandoned for quite some time. There was an abundance of overgrowth seeping out from the concrete ground's surface.

Thunder twisted around to see that everyone else had finally gotten off the ship and were exploring their new surroundings. The twins gaped at the trees and much to Thunder's amusement, Sentinel tip-toed _everywhere_ in case any native life sprang at him with the intent to kill.

He turned back around and quietly exhaled. After a few moments, Thunder took a deep intake of the air. The hybrid frowned as he perceived that his sense of smell had been dampened down since he went to live on Cybertron.

He _used_ to be able to smell the pheromones exuded from the nearby plants very well, but now . . . everything smelled _dull._

Before he could think of anything else however, a sweet and low and melodious tune broke into the air.

_'It can't be from them,'_ Thunder reasoned with himself as he looked at the others, also bewitched by the tune. _'That music . . . I know I saw her on the screen and everything but . . .'_

To his glee however, he knew _exactly _who was playing the little Oasian flute as it fell into a crescendo. Thunder just needed to know _where_ she was . . .

* * *

"Vhat playing that is?" Jetstorm asked. He tilted his helm this way and that. The others mimicked the method as they tried to pinpoint the song's origin.

Eventually Sari, who was hovering about in her jetpack, pointed to the tree line. Curious, the twins started to move closer toward the trees, only to be ordered to fall back from Sentinel.

"Who knows what kind of acid-spitting organics there are in there!" Sentinel cautioned.

Meanwhile, Jazz was a little ways away from the group. His viz-scanners were focused on the upper parts of the tree tops. The trees reminded Jazz somewhat of the pines of Earth, only about five times or so taller. The black bark glittered with a silver hue in the afternoon Oasian sun.

"Hey Thunder," Jazz called to his foster son.

"Where's th' musician? Can ya see her?"

The youngling didn't reply, nor did he seem to care that Jazz was speaking to him. The Elite Guardsmech then meandered closer to the youngling, and senses that Thunder was humming along with the tune.

Eventually, the youngling began to vocalize along with the tune in his native tongue. His timbre matched beautifully with the higher notes of the wind instrument's tune.

Jazz beamed at the serenity Thunder exuded for once.

"How do you know it's a 'she'?" Optimus inquired, taking out his ax. From what Thunder told of his crew of Oasian predators, the Prime wasn't going to take any chances.

"As far as Thunder tol' me," Jazz surmised with a smile. He jerked his helm towards one of the trees right in front of them.

"There's only _one_ femme from these parts that plays that instrument."

"ALRIGHT!" Sentinel snapped aloud, causing the music and Thunder's serenading to stop dissonantly. The others reacted as they covered their audio receptors from the ear-shattering pitches.

"Whoever it is, you better-"

**"San-yea souf dan?"** a voice inquired from the tree tops. Within two seconds, a lean white figure leaped out from one of the trees. Whoever the local was, he or she landed squarely on both pedes.

"So it _was_ you," the blue and silver Prime deduced. In front of him was a very slim Oasian femme that the others quickly figure out was their guide.

From beside Optimus, Bumblebee couldn't help but smirk to see that Thunder looked so flustered when Sentinel introduced the Oasian femme.

"Techno-organic and gentle-bots," Sentinel stated quite pompously, making the Oasian quickly shake her head. "I introduce our guide on Oasia soil, Overdrive Sparks."

"Greetings to you all," Overdrive responded with a grin.

The feline-like alien graciously bowed as she added, "And welcome to my home."

As she returned to her full height, one of her ears flicked toward Bulkhead. Overdrive turned to stare at him for a few moments. The Oasian sniffed the air twice. The first time, she was in disbelief. The second time Overdrive's optics glittered in happiness and she broke into a smile.

It was a noble try to conceal himself, but underestimating an Oasian nose . . .

"Thunder? That you?" she asks in English.

"Oh," the mentioned youngling spluttered. With 'help' from Bumblebee and Bulkhead shoving him out to the front, Thunder was now optic to optic with her. They both stared at each other for several moments before Overdrive grinned.

"Welcome back," the femme greeted the hybrid. The femme hugged him.

Thunder suddenly swooned out of her hold. The hybrid ended up landing flat on his back, much to the confusion of the Primes and the amusement of the others.

"Why did he-" Overdrive questioned, but stopped as Jazz comes over and patted her shoulder.

"He'll explain when he gets up," Jazz disclosed to her in Oasian. The femme nodded in acceptance and turned to the others, finally out of their fit of merriment.

"Follow me, and watch out for the roots of the trees," Overdrive articulated. She began to lead the others into the forest, heading to the Oasian tram station just a few miles away.


	8. Arrival: Part II

_Several hours later . . ._

Making a quick way toward the train station, Bumblebee couldn't help but gawk at it. It reminded him of the monorail systems back in Detroit. Remembering that Sari was experiencing homesickness, the small mech attempted to cheer her up. It slightly backfired . . . and made things worse for the techno-organic teen.

"I wonder how my dad is doing . . ." Sari sighed. She couldn't help it; after all, she was the one that reminded him to get food when he forgot to eat at times and helped at his company.

"Well," Overdrive remarked, gaining the techno-organic's attention. "If you give me the right comm-link frequency, I might be able to patch it through the terminal at my house. You'll be able to talk to your father then."

"Uh . . . thanks I guess?" Sari replied, somewhat annoyed. Sensing Sari's mood, the Oasian then slunk away toward where Jazz had propped Thunder up on a bench. The poor hybrid was still in stasis.

"Geez," Bulkhead commented to his buddies. He placed one of his servos just to the side of his mouth as he whispered to them, "Who'd have thunk that Thunder had a crush on someone?"

"From the way she hugged him, I'd say they knew each other when they were little, or at least when Thunder was still on Oasia," Sari snickered. She took a sideways glance at the comatose hybrid.

"Tsh, yeah," Bumblebee cackled softly.

His smile then developed into a frown when he questioned, "Hey, since when did Sarge make a buddy out of anyone?"

Sari's gaze immediately darted over to where Sentinel was. Oddly enough, the guide and Prime conversed to one another as if they were old friends. Sentinel stood straight and tall with his arms crossed, but seemed to be in friendlier spirits. Beside the blue Prime, Overdrive was speaking to him in quick, yet hushed tones, waving her servos about every once in a while.

"What in the name of the AllSpark?" Bulkhead asked, confused.

"Okay," Sari murmured, making a 'come here' gesture. The two mechs crowded closer to her. "Either she's forced to work with Sentinel since she's the guide, or she really is pals with him."

"I hope it's the former," Bumblebee replied, frowning.

Any one that spoke to Sentinel Prime like that, whether Autobot, Oasian, Hybrid, Human or Techno-Organic, the yellow mech started to become wary of.

* * *

_On the train . . ._

Jazz loved the ride.

For one thing, the conductor of the train was a gentle-mech, and was very courteous to them all.

One big difference between the Cybertronians and Oasians was that the organic-life dwelling Oasians wore _cloth _uniforms that pertained their occupations. The Oasian conductor dressed smartly with a black cap trimmed with gold yarn. His coat had brass colored buttons, and his white gloves contrasted beautifully with his black-blue metal feathers.

By Oasian standards, he's called a Flier. That included the Oasians that had features of avian creatures, mainly of the 'winged' category. However, by the time the conductor greeted everyone, he had to return to his duty.

Quietly, Overdrive inquired, "I heard you guys get your names based on your characteristics. Is that true?"

"Kinda . . ." Bumblebee mumbled, miffed by the memory of how he acquired his own.

"What about Oasians?" Optimus countered. "For most Cybertronians, we get them a bit later in our life-cycles instead of within a few hours like a human."

"Well . . ." Overdrive's ears flicked up at the inquiry, thinking. "For my people, a name is a way to describe the newborn, but the name has to be bestowed on the bornling within the first few hours, and be presented to Thistle."

"How's that done?" Sari interrogated. She leaned forward on her perch from Bumblebee's shoulder, interested.

"Well . . ." Overdrive looked at Sentinel. She raised an optic ridge at the Elite Guardsmech, challenging him.

"I'm not going to say anything," the navy colored Prime scoffed. He then turned his attention to the data-pad in his lap, fully ignoring her now.

"Well, let's just say it's easier once we get into the village," the femme Oasian sighed dreamily. "They're going to do a Naming Ceremony at moon rise."

"Is deal very big?" Jetfire asked.

"YES!" Thunder and Overdrive exclaimed at the same time. Jazz chuckled at his youngling's exuberance of the whole thing: the hybrid jumped out of his seat and his body shook from the thought of it!

"Whoa, whoa, slow down you two," Jazz chuckled. He clapped a servo on Thunder's shoulder, making him sit back down into his seat.

"I may understand a bit of yer customs you two, but please for the sake of the others," Jazz snickered, motioning around to the bewildered Cybertronians and techno-organic, "please explain."

The two exhale as Overdrive seated herself back into her seat. Thunder looked at her and tilted his helm to the side. The Oasian just exhaled again and said, "Fine, if you want me too . . ."

The guide cleared her throat and explained, "The Naming Ceremony isn't just to give the name to the new bornling, and it's to welcome him or her into the Clan."

"Clans in Oasia vary from village to village and province to province. For my village, it's of the family tree."

Overdrive stepped atop the seat she was in to grab something from within a hidden compartment. It took three strikes with her fist before it pops open, and a book fell out. Jazz grabbed it in his servo before it collided with the floor.

He diligently handed it to her. The white femme then flipped through several pages before she came upon an image of a large tree. An Oasian Family Tree to be precise. The others leaned in with curiosity, and they gaped at the sheer size of it.

There were four rows, but the lines that branched away from several of the images for a couple of them were many, and one branch separated into six images of the offspring!

"That your brother?" Sari inquired, pointing to the circle of an image right next to Overdrive. The said mech had a dark yellow armor. His optics were a piercing lime green coupled with a mischievous smirk. Several spots line around his cat-like audio-receptors and some were under his optics.

At the sight of him, Thunder reared back.

"From the way the kid's pulling back as if the picture will leap out at him and claw him to scrap," Ratchet smirked cheekily, "that's a yes."

"RATCHET!" Thunder exclaimed, chassis burning from indignation. That resulted with the entire car being filled with the sound of laughter.


	9. New Anticipation

Stalagmites and stalactites scattered about the entire cave. A full moon glowed outside, the light filtered in from a hole in the ceiling. Tree branches covered the opening, which camouflaged it from the outside. Just below the opening, a series of ledges descended towards the ground, like a staircase.

At the center of the cave, a deep pool of water rippled calmly. The moon's rays reflected to the dark cave walls. It made the stone the backdrop of the lights, as if they were in a dance. A walkway made of granite slashed through the pool's center

From above the branches rustled ominously; they parted to reveal a black tongue that flicked out to the air. The figure slithered his way in through the hole. He smelled that no one was around.

Good.

His upper body is lean, but muscular, his torso covered in scars. He has a slender neck and two skinny, yet strong arms. As he pulled the rest of himself in, his gray, metallic derma-plating started to merge into poisonous green and yellow scales near his waist. The serpent-like Oasian balanced himself with his hands on the stone ledge beneath him. Down, down, down, the Oasian glided down the jutting stones.

He looked smug. Slanted red eyes with black pupils glanced back at his catch.

Curled up in his tail was a ghastly assortment of his meal: a bloody leg of a hoofed animal, three eggs encased in twine, what remained of a huge and colorful, yet decapitated bird, and an odd top hat looking contraption.

Once he's at the bottom of the stone stairs, he happily unfurled his tail. His ghoulish meal looked delicious to him, but he had to wait of course. He turned his upper body around to gather his chow and pushed it towards the middle of the ring around the pond.

The meeting was tonight.

In an interval of every five minutes, more and more serpent-like creatures slither and worm their way through the hole. By the time everyone was accounted for, more than three-quarters of the assembly were males.

The assortment of the Oasian serpents hissed and chirped to one another in friendly chatter. The camaraderie between them all was clear, no matter the age.

Mated pairs curled up around each other, gathering warmth. The adolescent males passed the time with participants in tail-wrestling, simple sparing, jokes and some of the bold ones flirted with the females.

The females on the other hand, lounged around and watched their masculine counterparts. They weren't just watching them; they assessed them. Whether they were strong, smart . . . their physical traits.

After all, one was to be a future mate. Some of the girls whispered to one another in hushed tones. At times some would blush at what one of the elder females said.

Suddenly, a very cacophonous, metallic ring emanated from deep within the water. Everyone jerked up in attention. The serpents quickly arranged themselves into their respective ages; youngest toward the left of the entrance as the elder ones slithered toward the right.

The water bubbled as a dark figure rose from the depths. The assembly watched with abated breaths, waiting.

* * *

Thunder looked out the window and gasped aloud as he saw the ocean.

"Wow . . ." Thunder whispered. He stared at the water that glittered far below. A warm chuckle from beside made him turn his helm to his foster-father. The youngling smiled sheepishly.

"Ya excited?" Jazz asked. He tilted his helm to the side cheekily as Thunder rolled his optics.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be, Pops?"

"Bots change."

Thunder donned a confident smile as he replied, "Not the people of Silver Summit. I may not have grown up there, but dear Thistle, who art thou in heaven," the Oasian hybrid threw his servos up to the air in jubilation, "they're very good people. 'Fore you came along, they took my mother, aunt and cousin in."

Jazz nodded with a smile at the reminder. Silver Summit was one of the few places on Oasia that had a variety of hybrid refugees from Cybertron, hybrids banished from other villages, and many other assortments of people who needed and wanted help.

"They even housed an Autobot that wanted to be spark-mates with an Oasian, correct?" Optimus asked. Thunder looked up at the blue and red Prime.

"Yeah . . . and he's a part of Overdrive's family," the hybrid smiled. At the sound of her name, the Oasian Guide turned around in her seat. She had a smile plastered upon her face.

"And he's expecting~!" Overdrive sing-songed. At that, Thunder sat up, intrigued.

"H-how many?"

"Mmm . . . last I heard, triplets!" the femme squealed. She bounced up and down in her seat.

"Triplets?! Isn't that dangerous?!" Bumblebee exclaimed. Thunder and Overdrive face-palmed.

"Um, Bumblebee, is it?" Overdrive asked. When the yellow mech nodded in confirmation, Overdrive gave him a slanted smile.

"Oasians and Cybertronians may be similar in anatomy and such, but having multiple . . . 'sparks' residing in the mo-Carrier, is just fine. Though, it gets dangerous past four."

"We gonna see him?" Bulkhead inquired. He was very intrigued.

"I think so," Overdrive nodded. "Though, they may come late to the party tonight-"

"Did you say party?" Bumblebee bolted upright in excitement.

"Quiet short-stack!" Sentinel barked. Bulkhead quickly placed a servo atop Bumblebee's shoulder, just in case. Sari face-palmed as she sighed in disdain.

"Sentinel . . ." Jazz mumbled quietly. Thunder could hear the warning undertone in the Cyber-Ninja's voice. Sentinel shrugged nonchalantly and went back to his data-pad.

"Wait, why is there a party again?" Sari quickly asked, switching subjects.

"Well, the Festival of the Children was cut in half-" Overdrive was cut off by the groan of annoyance from Thunder and continued after Jazz thumped him on the back to silence him, "because of the meeting. I swear the rest of the villagers are going _caron-naron,_trying to tidy up."

Thunder let out a knowing laugh. The others stared at him in confusion.

"Well, _caron-naron_ is translated to 'willy-nilly' in English. Think about it: bots plus food plus games plus firecrackers and other little bits of scraps, equals what?"

_"Oh," _Bumblebee and Bulkhead said together.

The train car became somewhat quiet again with the occupants talking to their respective cliques. Jetstorm, who sat near the front with his recharging brother, looked up. The seats at the front/back of the cars faced in, giving Jetstorm a good vantage point to see that Sentinel's optics ridges were furrowed together. The elder of the twins left his seat to seat himself next to the blue Prime.

"Mister Sentinel Prime, sir," he started in a whisper. "Vhy worried is you?" The Prime's expression was grave as he lowered the data-pad.

"I just got a message from Oasia's leader, Jewel Star."

Jetstorm looked around to see if anyone paid any attention to them. Jazz was the only one. It took one that knew the Elite Guardsmech well enough to know where the white and black looked.

"Vhat say she?" Jetstorm murmured so that only Sentinel could hear.

"There's been a threat letter sent to the Star's office. I don't want to scare you, but-"

"On looking out?" Jetstorm finished. The jet twin quickly nodded and patted the Primes shoulder. As quickly as Jetstorm came over, he headed back to his twin.

The second-in-command quickly flashed an optical code via his faction symbol and an encrypted message to a few members of the car. One by one, Optimus, Ratchet and Jazz furtively nodded at Sentinel, confirming they got what he sent out.

Jazz unconsciously tapped at his ankles where his nunchakus were kept. The Elite Guardsmech hoped that he wouldn't have to use them . . .

He looked over to Thunder, who conversed happily with Overdrive in his native tongue.

'_Primus so help me if I have to use them,'_ Jazz prayed somberly.

* * *

**A/N: Just a little note: Updates for each and every one of my stories until the start of summer, are going to be updated _MONTHLY._**


	10. Old Place, Old Friends, Same Laws

_Five hours later . . ._

However smooth the ride was earlier, that was thrown out the window when it stopped. The sound akin to twenty metallic crows screaming ground from the brakes. Everyone in the car jumped at least a foot out of their seats. Thunder and the rest of the younglings covered their audio receptors in a vain attempt to halt the noise.

"UY!" Overdrive exclaimed once the train stopped. She stuck a digit into her ear and moved it around as she tried to stop the ringing in her ears.

"Does that usually happen?" Jazz asked. Compared to the others, he wasn't that badly affected by the jolt.

"No, but this is a really old train," Thunder explained. Overdrive nodded in agreement. She turned to look outside the windows and her optics widened in shock; her tail twitched in apprehension. Before anyone could ask her what was going on, she murmured, "I ought to step out first, in case the guards get antsy."

Everyone looked out to the windows. Large and muscular Oasian guards flanked each side of the train. Each one wore armor of the High Oasian Council: silver helmets adorned with a variety of bright-colored feathers, armor glinted ruby-red, orange, or camouflage green in the sunlight. Each of the soldiers carried a spear and shield in hand. Sari paled as she noticed the large canine teeth the warriors sported.

"What, is this the welcoming committee?" Jazz murmured. He had been put on edge as well. Had the threat been carried out? No, he reasoned. The soldiers would have worn black mourning badges if that happened to the leader of Oasia.

"Go 'Drive," Thunder encouraged. Overdrive nodded and carefully stepped out. The tallest of the soldiers stepped forward and curtly nodded at Overdrive. The femme curtsied in return, and they began to converse to one another.

Jazz strained to hear what they spoke about. He could hear a few snippets of the Oasian dialogue.

**"Precaution-"**

**"No need to overreact-"**

**"Ma'am, glad you made it back with the ruffians-"**

**"Ruffians they are not!"** Overdrive retorted. She quickly composed herself as she added, **"My apologies sir, I was not expecting such a high amount of security concerning the upcoming meeting."**

**"Again, precaution for their safety, and yours,"** the warrior bowed. He gestured toward the car. **"Let them file out by rank."** There was a twitch of disdain in the femme's tail, but said no more. Overdrive grasped the door frame as she returned.

"Sentinel's first, then Jazz, and then the twins. Optimus Prime, please arrange your team in the order we discussed," Overdrive said. She sent an apologetic look as Thunder's shoulders slumped.

By Oasian law, hybrids ranked the lowest in any situation.

Jazz quietly patted the youngling's shoulders in comfort. "You're still one of the best in my book," he whispered. He didn't know if it worked, but Thunder nodded with a quiet sigh.

They all filed out, and Overdrive translated Cybertronian to Oasian from Sentinel to the Head Guard. "He says that you and your team are to stay at my home until the meeting commences in two days," Overdrive translated the guttural sounds from the Head Guard.

Sentinel nodded in affirmation and by protocol, saluted to the Head Guard. "Lead us the way," Sentinel stated to her.

Overdrive nodded to him and turned to the much taller Oasian beside her. She bowed to the Head Guard.

**"Permission to leave, sir?" **Overdrive asked the large Oasian.

**"Permission granted,"** the male nodded. He patted her shoulder. **"Keep safe, and keep your guard up." **He eyed the hybrid in the back of the line suspiciously.

**"Especially of ****_that _****one. He may take advantage of you."**

While most of the Cybertronians were confused of the exchange, Thunder visibly bristled and hissed. Immediately, the tall Oasian marched over to the hybrid, very angry. Overdrive tried to stop him, only to be held back by the other guards.

Thunder realized his mistake too late. The hybrid quickly ducked his helm in submission. It was an essential thing he had learned back when he was a little one.

**"You ****_dare _****hiss in the face of a member of the High Guard, wretch?"**the Head Guard. Thunder kept his optics to the ground and his pedes. He didn't dare breathe. **"You incompetent thing, speak!"** He raised a claw to strike.

Everyone froze.

The sharp appendage hurtled down upon the youngling, only to be blocked by a certain black and white.

**"Leave him alone,"** Jazz retorted. His free servo turned into a fist. The Cyber-Ninja snarled at the Guard, who merely looked down at him with annoyance.

"Keep your filthy translator on a leash," the Head Guard snorted. He shook his limb out of the mech's strong grip. "The last thing we need is trash littering the ground from a thing that shouldn't have happened." He soon turned tail and left. The other guards followed suit.

As soon as he was out of sight, Overdrive quickly walked over to Jazz. The Elite Guardsmech supported the swaying youngling. Thunder hyperventilated; that was too close for comfort.

"T-too close . . ." he shivered.

"Whoa, easy," Sari murmured. She hopped over to him as Bumblebee placed her down beside him. Ratchet frowned as he quickly assessed the situation.

"Set him down on the bench. Helm between knees," the medic recommended. Jazz quickly shuffled Thunder over and seated him. Thunder followed Ratchet's instruction. However, each of his intakes were shaky.

"Why were they like that?" Bulkhead asked.

"The same way most Cybertronians discriminate against hybrids, and more so to Oasians," Overdrive exhaled. Sentinel furtively sent her an apologetic look.

Once Thunder finally calmed down, Bumblebee's tanks rumbled. He covered his stomach area as his face-plates flushed with embarrassment.

"Come along then, I bet you're all hungry," Overdrive smiled, albeit a little sad.

"Where to?" the twins inquired. The others nodded in agreement.

"I know a place that caters to hybrids, Cybertronians and Oasians," the Oasian explained. Thunder perked up at the sound of it.

"Wait, are you talkin' about Trixie?" Jazz asked.

"Who's Trixie?" Sentinel inquired, downright confused.

Overdrive chuckled as she said, "She's one of the best cooks this side of the planet-"

"And is a certain some-bot's cousin," Jazz added. He gave Thunder a reassuring side-hug.

"Well, I'm starving!" Bumblebee exclaimed. He threw his hands up into the air. "Let's move so that we can eat!" Overdrive let out an uneasy laugh.

"C'mon, before the guards get back," Thunder said.

* * *

Above, the moon began to appear. As they entered the town, it was quiet, much to the Autobots' relief. There was evidence of the cleanup process of a festival. A few Oasians were doing their duties as Overdrive passed by. They waved to her in greeting before they ventured back to their duties. A few spared curious glances at the Cybertronians. However, one walked up beside Thunder and then gave him an elated hug.

"Dusty!" Thunder exclaimed cheerfully as the two embraced.

"Geez Brother, we ought to catch up later!" Dusty said quickly once they let go of each other. The Autobots paused in their procession to look at back at them. Dusty was much taller than Thunder, about a helm's length. From the shadows, the others could make out a tail that wagged from the rear of the other youngling.

"Yeah, maybe, we're headin' to Trixie's, and then to Overdrive's to rest for the night."

"Cool Brother, later!" Dusty said. He clapped a servo upon Thunder's arm. Soon, the silhouette pranced off to finish his duties.

"Thistle, I can't believe he is still alive," Thunder breathed in awe as they continued on.

"The Star, bless her soul," Overdrive explained as she stretched, "implemented a new law just two moons ago: 'No hybrids are to be hurt by maiming, hunting, or by any other vicious means of violence'."

"So, the High Guard can get away with anything?" Sari asked, incredulous. "You saw what he nearly did to Thunder!"

"I'll write a notice to the Star-" Sentinel said, but he was loudly interrupted by a "NO!"

Everyone stared at the translator, stunned.

Thunder quickly explained, "It's ok if a guard that hates me-"

"Thunder . . ." Jazz murmured, though the youngling didn't hear.

"-but if he gets canned BECAUSE of a hybrid, I'll be on his hit list!" Thunder shook his helm as Overdrive tried to persuade him from his opinion. "It's fine 'Drive; we better get movin' along." The disturbed hybrid soon trudged ahead of them all. He made a bee-line to an open restaurant. Yellow light poured out from its open door.

"There's _Trixie's,_" Overdrive sighed.

Unnoticed to them all, a female guard with yellow optics gazed down upon them from a nearby rooftop. As she gripped her metal spear, hard enough to leave dents into it, a black tongue flickered out from her lips.

* * *

**A/N: Yeah, I know it's kinda slow in getting to the main bit of the part. I promise it'll be a bit sped up after this though.**


End file.
